


Appetite

by notcrindy



Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Angus is Lup and Barry's biological son, Gen, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Lup dies giving birth to him and Barry dies soon after, hi this is a Babadook AU, i write about grieving elves a Lot huh, sorry this one is kind of dark but y'all know how it goes sometimes, why i don't know but here it is
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-31
Updated: 2018-05-31
Packaged: 2019-05-16 08:42:00
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,855
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14808035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notcrindy/pseuds/notcrindy
Summary: "Whether you're a century, or two, or younger,you can't get rid of John, the Hunger."(a Babadook AU.)





	Appetite

**Author's Note:**

> tw: death, grief, suicide mention at the very beginning of this chapter. PLEASE take these warnings seriously. this shit is based off of a horror film, so Read with Caution. i love you all, thanks.

It starts the same way every time.

Her breaths are labored; she’s _in_ labor. The baby’s coming too soon, and the entire process is fraught with more peril than anyone involved would like (ideally, there’d be _no_ peril, but this is life). Her husband’s by her side, natch. He’s a nerdy guy, but also one of Taako’s best friends, and someone he would trust with absolutely everything he had for the most part. You can _see_ the love Barry holds for Lup in his eyes, even as she nearly squeezes the circulation out of his hand.

He makes light-hearted jokes to cut the tension of the room in half; she doesn’t take kindly to any of them, so he stops. He’s the one holding her _other_ hand, barely even flinching at her tight grip and reassuring her that she’s _got_ this for sure and he believes in her, he really does. He always relives the look on her face, the pain, the bleeding, the frantically trying to get doctors to see what’s wrong. He relives the screeching of the half-elf boy born too soon, spitting image of his mother and father somehow at a few measly seconds to minutes long, and the way her hand goes limp in his.

He relives the loss, the way that Barry looks at him when she goes and then goes weak in the knees, falling to the ground and sobbing unabashedly alongside the infant’s wailing. The loss of Barry comes next, because he just -- can’t cope, can’t face a life without Lup, and it’s evident for a while in the way he _begs_  Taako, literally _begs_ him to end it. When he takes matters into his own hands, it’s not… ...a shock. Or it is one, but one so big Taako doesn’t process anything, and so naturally when he’s saddled with the kid, he--

\--oh, gods, he doesn’t know what to _do._ He’s not _prepared_ for this, he--

He wakes as always, slowly adjusting to the waking world. Hoping for one brief second that it bears no resemblance to the dreamworld, only to realize that it _did_ six or so years ago. Six years is nothing for an elf, but he tries to measure time in human ways nonetheless; it’s not an eyeblink for the half-elf in his care the same way it is for him. It’s been this kid’s whole _life,_ so he tries.

“Dad?” A small voice greets him.

He groans, not yet ready to face the waking world, groggy with insomnia. “Angs, you _gotta_ stop waking me like this, little dude.” He tries to pull the cover over his face, muffling the little boy’s voice just slightly. “Taako’s gotta get his beauty sleep _somehow._ What’d we say about calling me that anyway, huh?”

“Not to do it,” the little voice recalls. “Sorry.”

“‘S’okay, little man.”

“It’s just that in all my books and on TV, that’s what _everyone_ calls their--”

Well, this isn’t going to go away until he diverts the boy’s attention. Taako rises, rubbing his eyes a little and brushing a few strands of messy blonde hair out of his face. “M’n’kay, okay, Agnes, you got me. You got Uncle Taako’s attention. ‘S the monsters again, yeah?”

Now he can see Angus’s face, sometimes such a haunting reminder of his sister and her husband that it freezes him in his tracks. It probably wouldn’t be so difficult if it weren’t the middle of the night and he didn’t look so _scared,_ pointed ears drooping, but it triggers some sort of terrible nausea and fight-or-flight reflex that seeing the boy’s parents like that always did. In the practically-no-light of 2 AM, everything tinged shades of grey, it’s hard to cope.

“I--I think so, Uncle Taako.”

But it’s his job to cope.

“Okay, then,” Taako mumbles, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes and yawning and stretching. “Let’s go check it out, then, hey? Sooner we do that, the sooner we can get back to bed. Sound good?”

It’s what they’d both want, at least.

The little boy nods, biting his trembling lip to appear brave. “We--we can’t figure out how to defeat the monster,” he reasons in a small voice, “if we don’t try to retrace its steps. I can’t find any footprints, but--but sometimes Caleb Cleveland doesn’t find the clues at first. It’s best if you check with me, um, just to be safe.”

“‘kay, Pumpkin,” he sighs, allowing the boy to take his hand, trying not to think of his mother’s grip. Thankfully, most of that has faded with the dream by now. “I got your back. Time to smash some ghouls.”

“Don’t you mean bust some ghosts?”

“ _Tch._ Whatever.” Taako scoffs. “Not everyone is as smart as _you,_ Angus.”

There’s no monster, obvi. There _never_ is, but it’s important for Taako to go through this whole song and dance anyway. He learned that shit early on, the first time he ever refused to indulge in this stupid weird kid’s stuff that he never went through himself and Angus made him _pay_ for it, keeping him up for two days straight with obsessive attention to detail mixed delightfully with terror to create the world’s shittiest childhood cocktail. He knows better now, and he leads the boy with confidence into his bedroom, making sure to scope out every nook and cranny with him.

“See anything new?”

“Nope,” Angus admits after he’s inspected practically every area of his room with a magnifying glass, paying careful attention to both the space under the bed and the closet. “But it’s good we checked. Caleb Cleveland says it’s always important to be… ...th… ...thorough.”

“Big word for such a little guy,” he praises Angus absently, ruffling his hair. “Learnin’ a lot from those books, aren’t’cha?”

“Oh, _yes_ , I always do, Uncle Taako,” Angus brags. When he does, he smiles just enough so that Taako can see he’s missing two teeth, and it’s endearing somehow. “You _know_ that!” After not even a moment, the pride disappears and is replaced with a certain bashfulness and a wringing of the hands. “Um, speaking of books, can we--”

He knew this was coming. It always does. “Sure thing, Boy Detective. You know the drill.”

The little boy is relieved anyway, going over to a little bookshelf in his room and scanning all the titles and book spines until he finds one that pleases him. He’s already growing out of so many picture books, being so incredibly literate that his guardian is honestly kinda taken aback by it, but when he needs to be comforted he likes the pictures. Taako won’t admit it a lot of the time, but it’s pretty cute, the way Angus is so enchanted with watercolor illustrations of some mystery nerd thwarting the latest Monster of the Week, some old man in a mask. It’s a reminder that as smart as Angus is, he’s still just a little boy like any other kid at the end of the day.

He picks the same one a lot, natch. His boy is nothing if not fond of routine and he knows what he likes, so Taako isn’t surprised to see a certain title in his hands as they head back to his room. He takes the boy in his arms, propping the book up so they can both see. “ _Caleb Cleveland and the Case of the Seven Birds,_ huh? Never would’ve guessed!”

Angus smiles up at him just slightly. “It’s my _favorite one,_ Uncle Taako!”

“Yeah?”

The kid huffs, knowing they’ve been through this same shit so many times before, but not quite old enough to pick up on the fact Taako’s just pulling his leg. “I _told_ you so,” he explains anyway, straightening the glasses on the bridge of his nose. “‘cuz seven is my favorite number.”

What kind of kid has a _favorite number?_ This one, obviously, taking after his dad in ways he doesn’t even realize. “Oh, that’s right, silly me,” Taako quips, feigning surprise and pretending to have forgotten. “I dunno how I always forget that about the number!”

“You forget _everything,_ ” sighs Angus. For a moment, Taako wishes it were true.

“Yeah, but that just makes things seem _new and exciting._ You gonna read or drag me all night, boychik? Up to you.”

He watches as Angus’s ears perk up in sudden urgency. “I’ll read, I’ll read!”

“Okay then,” Taako laughs just a little. “Lay it on me, Kindergarten Cop.”

Angus is _always_ insistent on being the one who reads aloud to Taako. He’s pretty sure it’s usually the other way around, but he never minds it. Sometimes he stumbles over words he doesn’t know and Taako corrects him, but the kid has a flair for the dramatic when he reads that the elf can _definitely_ appreciate, and it’s fun to listen to all of his different inflections. He gets so _excited_ when he reads, even if he’s read the same books with the same plots and the same illustrations about a hundred times, and he checks all the time to make sure that Taako is paying attention. It’s hard for him not to drift away himself, sleep-deprived and comfortable, but he always stays awake ‘til the boy falls asleep with the book still clutched limply between his fingers. His glasses are usually askew, and Taako delicately plucks them off his face and moves gently to put them on the nightstand, right on top of the book.

He makes sure he’s all covered up on the other side of the bed before he leans over and turns out the light. “‘Night, Pumpkin.”

When Angus murmurs in his sleep, trying to cuddle up to Taako, the elf _freezes._ It feels too much like when Lup’d cuddle him when they were kids, down to the soft tiny breaths and the heartbeat, and he always disentangles him before turning away and facing the other side of the bed. It’s not _fair,_ but hey, Taako’s not trying to win any Parent of the Year awards.

(He shouldn’t even be a parent, anyway.

He _isn’t_ a parent at all.)

Morning always comes too early, sunshine spilling from the window and onto his face like it’s out to personally offend him, and he always groans and pulls the blanket over his head. Angus is always the one to wake him, though, up bright and early and promptly in the way only youth can afford to be. “Cereal sound okay to you?” He knows the answer, but asks anyway.

“Oh, _yes,_ please,” Angus gasps, in a manner that’s both too enthusiastic for the early morning and incredibly polite. “‘ve got almost all the decoder rings and we’re down to the last of it!”

“Ooh,” he gasps, “how _exciting._ C’mon then, Angus. Let’s go scope out your nerd stuff. See what’s the haps.”

As they eat Fruity Pebbles and Taako watches Angus contentedly pour out almost the rest of his cereal in search of this dinky decoder whatever, he’s thankful for probably the trillionth time that the kid in his care can appreciate basic meals like cereal. Occasionally he’ll ask for something like insta-pancakes or Eggos and Taako can deal with that, too, but nothing beyond it. Their pantry is populated with stuff like Pop Tarts and Toaster Strudel and sometimes he even treats them to some toast with different fancy jams, but that’s about as far as he’ll go.

Lup would be appalled, he thinks sometimes.

Should’ve thought of that before she up ‘n’ left.

Angus is happy just to have his little plastic prize; she can deal, wherever she is.

After a little while of filling the morning with excitement over decoding some message that probably just tells him to Eat More Fruity Pebbles, Angus is surprisingly pensive. Taako notices it, the way he stirs the milk with his little silver spoon and watches it turn different colors. “Hey, Uncle Taako?”

“Yeah, little guy?”

“I’ve been thinking about something.” He’s clearly deep in thought, still stirring, as he props his face up in his hand and leans his elbow on the table. His glasses are even slightly crooked, but he doesn’t seem to notice at all. He’s got Lup’s freckles, Taako muses, and it’s a very distracting thought to have right then, but he pulls it together.

“Tell me all about it, Boy Wonder.”

Angus lets out a little sigh. “Well, in Caleb Cleveland, he always solves the mystery and gets the monster. Sometimes he has to save lots of grownups, too. And… ...and I want you to know something.” He takes a deep breath, then looks Taako right in the eyes, sincere and serious as anything. “When the monster comes, that’s what I’ll do. You don’t have to worry; I’m learning how.”

Boy. A Scooby Doo rip-off has this kid _that_ spooked, huh? Taako humors him anyway. “I know that’s what you _would_ do,” he says carefully, “if there were a monster, for sure. Defsies. But there’s not gonna be one, ‘kay? Casa de Taako and Angus is 100% Monster Proof, you have my word on that. No stupid monster’s gonna take _me_ down, ‘cuz I ain’t ‘fraid of no ghost.”

“Monsters aren’t ghosts, Uncle Taako,” Angus says quietly, still staring somberly into his bowl.

“Well, I ain’t ‘fraid of no _monsters,_ either. Now hurry up and finish your breakfast, ‘kay? Or we’re gonna be late.”

Obediently, his nephew slurps up the rest of his milk and dabs his own face with a paper towel, always so particular and clean in a way that Taako just can’t understand. With that, they’re on their way to school. Taako can’t help but feel anxious every time he drops Angus off, ‘cuz the kid loves to learn, but not everyone in an environment like that can… ...can _appreciate_ it. He’s skipped a grade so he’s already surrounded by a bunch of older jerks, and even though he seems to get by okay, he just _knows_ some of the kids pick on him. Probably doesn’t help that his uncle never went to formal school, himself, and so doesn’t know what to expect.

Looking after a kid is such tough work.

That’s why it’s _mega_ unfair that he has to head off to work directly after. He manages not to be late, though, donning the usual wait staff garb and practicing his most hollow and cheerful lipstick grin before he tends to tables. Always someone who chooses to hit on him several times a day, and he always has to take it with a grain of salt and let it roll off his back otherwise it’s bad for business. He’s been sassy a few times; it’s never worked out well. Guess that’s what he gets for wanting to work around food still. The busboy Kravitz nearly makes it all worth it, but Taako doesn’t see him around today, which is a big shame.

“Welcome to Sizzle it Up,” he chirps as mindlessly as possible. “What can I get’cha?”

“Are _you_ on the menu or what?”

Deep breaths, Taako.

“You wanna know something?” He forces the words out with nothing but bubblegum pop positivity, trying to refrain from the usual sarcasm or venom. ‘Least it’ll get him good tips, hopefully. “Never heard that one before!”

“You’re kidding.”

“Deadass,” he lies through his teeth. “You’re so _charming_ and _witty,_ so anyway--”

Welp, here comes Sazed, looking _super pissed_ as per usual. “Taako,” he grumbles, “your child’s _school_ is on the phone.”

“Aw, _shit,_ ” Taako curses. When a few of the customers around him look shocked at his language, it takes all of him not to tell every single one of them to blow him while roller skating away and flipping everyone the goddamn bird, but he’s pretty concerned with still raking in the cash so he manages to exercise some pretty huge restraint. “Uh, sorry ‘bout that, folks. Hang on real quick; someone else’ll be along shortly.”

Ren is the only one who’s not violently opposed to working his shift, and he thanks her endlessly as he unties his stupid pink roller skates and leaves them behind at that hellhole where they belong. He can’t imagine how a kid like Angus could fuck up at school, so all he can think is that some kid picked a fight with him and he got his _face_ all socked in and they’re gonna have to have the Talk and it’s going to be Taako trying to advise Angus to get quick on his feet, ‘cuz he sure isn’t picking up after his mom when it comes to muscle, tough break, kiddo--

Lucky him, it’s something else _entirely._

“Bullshit,” he murmurs in disbelief, glancing down at the wand.

The lady behind the desk is young and unflinching, stoic in pretty much all senses of the word. “I’m afraid not, Mister Taaco. We caught him attempting to cast Fireball in an attempt to chase away some imaginary foe. Thankfully, this is the first time we’ve known of an incident like this, and we’re all terribly surprised. Angus is a remarkable child with excellent grades.”

“Thank _fuck,_ ” Taako sighs in relief under his breath.

“But it concerns us that he ever had access to such a weapon in the first place, and he could have seriously injured another child. Do you know where he could’ve gotten a thing like this, or where he would have learned such a spell? Are there any magic users in your--”

“ _No,_ ” he blurts out more defensively than he means to. “I mean, uh, no. No fucking--no way, I mean. We’re--magic’s not _allowed_ in our house, okay? I used to dabble in it, like, transmutation was kind of my whole thing, but uh. Haven’t done that shit in years, haven’t even touched a wand in forever, I swear.”

The woman raises an eyebrow. “Very well, then.”

“Listen, Miss Lucretia--may I call you Lucretia?”

“I mean,” she stammers, slightly caught off-guard. “That’s basically my name without the ‘Miss’ in front of it, so--”

“Cool, cool,” Taako babbles, trying to look disaffected. “So, Lucretia, I know this _looks_ bad. Like, it looks super duper bad and I won’t sugarcoat that for you, no six year old kid should know a spell like that and I totally get you, it put other kids at risk and was kind of a bad move on my nephew’s part. But like, given this is his first offense, uh, and he’s a pretty great kid, d’you mind letting us off with a warning? I mean, kid probably knows that shit so good ‘cuz he can read and memorize like a _master,_ and uh.” He’s floundering. “That should be--be rewarded, am I right?”

Time to break out the Fantasy Crest toothy grin. Gets ‘em every time.

Lucretia sighs, rubbing her temples. “Mister Taaco, I’m sorry--”

“Taako,” he tries.

“What?”

“Call me Taako. Um, spelled differently, ‘T-A-A-K…’ ...you know what, I’m just rambling and wasting your time now, go on.”

She blinks. “Taako, I’m sorry, but we just can’t afford leniency in these situations. It’s unfortunate, because Angus really _is_ a model student and a delight to have in class, and he has such a passion for learning that’s frankly evident to everyone on staff. But we can’t excuse him for something of his magnitude, not when other children could have been hurt, or even adults for that matter. He brought a _weapon_ to school.”

“He’s _six,_ ” Taako bites back now. “Kid probably--probably didn’t know what he was doing.”

“And that makes it _better?_ Listen, we know this is a difficult situation. We’re willing to try to work with you in the future, but for now we have no choice but to suspend him indefinitely.”

“Wow,” he seethes, “what a load of _horseshit._ ”

“Mister Taaco, _please,_ this is a school environment--”

“Wow, no, you know what? Fuck this school, and fuck you. He’s bullied all the _time_ by kids like twice his size who push him around ‘cuz he’s tiny ‘n’ weird and y’all don’t do _dick._ What are you, like, picking on him ‘cuz he’s got elf and human parents? Is _that_ what this is? ‘cuz usually just us elves are that racist, and even _then,_ this is a new god damn _low,_ okay--”

“Of _course_ not,” she tries. “We never discriminate against _any--_ ”

“You know what,” he rambles, beyond angry. “It doesn’t matter. Don’t expect him to show up tomorrow, or any other day after that, okay? He deserves better than you bunch of chucklefucks.”

“I _really_ don’t think withdrawing him from school is the answer--”

“And I _really_ don’t care about your opinion,” he hisses, ears flattened back.

Thankfully, he manages to get in touch with Magnus after that entire fiasco. He’s taking June to the park and invites both of them to come along, and Taako’s relief is so real it’s almost physical as he’s given _something_ to do with the kid all day. Angus is incredibly quiet on the way there, staring out the window and daydreaming.

“You wanna tell me what that was all about, kid?”

Angus shakes his head.

“Fine by me, but you _know_ it wasn’t cool. You _know_ you’re not allowed near all the magic shit. And that was _definitely_ my old wand for sure, so you’ve got some explaining to do later, Mister Man.”

The kid is almost always infuriatingly quiet when he’s upset, and this time is no exception, as he sits and crosses his arms. They’re quiet the whole rest of the way, and it only really lets up when they get to the park. Taako has to encourage him to go play, and even then, the kid just grabs a book from his backpack and goes to sit in the shade of a tree where he won’t be bothered.

He groans as he plops down next to Magnus to watch the kids play. “Hey, big fella.”

“Hey, Taako,” Magnus greets with the usual friendliness. “Rough day?”

“Yeah,” Taako admits, “little bit. Some days just aren’t yours, y’know?”

“Boy, do I ever!”

Magnus is one of the kindest people Taako knows, secretly. He’s a real nice guy and just being around him can put Taako at ease. It’s silly to think that he was ever so concerned fatherhood wouldn’t be a great look on Magnus, when he adopted June after all that stuff with Julia. Unlike Taako, the man is excellent with kids, always willing to play and always full of so much energy. He envies it a little, but only because he _has_ to, only because it would be so much easier for Taako if he were that way.

Ah, well. C’est la vie.

“Birthday party’s still on, right? I know we’re all missing out on how _wicked_ good my baked goods are, but listen, this new bakery opened up practically down the street and it’s pretty--”

“Taako,” Magnus manages after a second. “Uh, I’m really sorry, but it’s… ...sort of looking like June wants to have her _own_ birthday party this year. Like, without Angus.”

“Oh.”

This is not Taako’s day.

“Now, don’t get me wrong--June _loves_ Angus! But she just kind of wants to do her own thing, that’s all. And I mean, who could blame her?” He starts, laughing a little. “What kid wants to _share their birthday_ and _all that attention_ with--”

To his credit, he stops that particular sentence in his tracks and looks super guilty and embarrassed _immediately._ He realizes what he’s saying, but _not_ to his credit, it takes him a second to figure out how to backtrack. “I mean, other than twins like you and Lup, that’s totally--”

“It’s cool,” Taako tries, murmuring a little.

Magnus looks pained. “Fuck, Taako, you _know_ I didn’t mean--”

“Nope,” he insists. “Totally get it. We’re fine, Mags.”

“Well, okay,” Magnus finally agrees, because there’s not much else to do, but he’s avoiding Taako’s gaze like a guilty puppy. “But I mean, hey, maybe… ...maybe you could try to celebrate on his actual birthday this year, you know? I know it’s hard, but we could still show up, and I know my counselor always says that the important thing is to make _new_ memories--”

“Maybe,” he says, a little more high-pitched and defensive than he wants.

He can hear snippets of Angus’s conversation with June, since she’s come over to look at the book with him. “That sounds mighty scary, Angus,” she says, peering over to look at his book and the illustrations inside.

“Yeah, the monster’s _definitely_ gonna show up, but um, when it does I’m going to find it and save the day, don’t worry. Just like Caleb, see?”

At least he has _one_ friend.

Make that two, ‘cuz when they get back, Merle Highchurch is checking up on them both. He’s an older dwarven guy, and Taako sort of suspects he’s got weed stashed somewhere in his place, but he always has different flowers in his beard and he’s pretty cheerful and peaceful. Just seeing him takes the edge off a little, and he greets them with a smile like always, waving his prosthetic arm. “Hey there, neighbors!”

“Hey, Merle.” Taako flashes a peace sign back, just as a reflex.

“Hi there, Merle,” Angus greets, but he’s quieter than usual.

“Lookin’ tired, kid,” Merle notes. “You doin’ okay?”

“‘m fine, thanks,” he mumbles before making his way inside.

“Kinda a rough day today.”

“That’s too bad. Well, if either of you needs me, you know I’m not far.”

“Thanks, Merle. See you ‘round.”

Mercifully, nighttime rolls around, and with it comes the opportunity for both of them to rest. Angus requests a bedtime story like usual, and Taako tells him to go ahead and pick one out like he always does before they settle in. He’s never seen the book before, or if he has, he can’t remember getting it; it’s not too wordy, and almost looks like a popup book, but Angus insists on reading it anyway. Probably wants something simple and nice after the day he’s had.

It occurs to him to _maybe_ bring up the magic thing, but what the hell. It can wait.

“All right, Ango, you’re the boss,” he says, kicking back instead. “Regale me.”

“What’s that mean?” He looks up at Taako with those innocent eyes, and Taako can nearly forgive him for anything.

“It means tell me your _story,_ goofus.”

Angus smiles, just a little. “Okay.”

With that, he opens the book, tenderly and carefully as he ever treats any book in his life. Already it’s different from the usual fare; the illustration is of an older man dressed head to toe in black, with colorful flecks in his clothes and all around him. It’s _beautiful,_ in a weird way--kind of reminds Taako of black opal--but there’s something sort of weird about it from the get-go.

“ _Whether you’re a century, or two, or younger,  
_ _you can’t get rid of John, the Hunger._ ”

Page-turn. Now there’s a door. When Angus pulls the little tab, a hand sticks out, waving and glimmering.

 _“If you think you’re clever  
_ _and can see right through his ruse,  
_ _then you can try forever_  
to detect and find the clues.”

This seems… ...too relevant. He’s on guard, but the boy keeps reading.

 _“His name seems simple--only John,  
_ _but this is the mask the Hunger puts on._ ”

Same man, same getup, same sparkles.

 _“A rumbling sound, then many eyes  
_ _will help you see through his disguise._  
What an awful and awesome surprise!”

Suddenly, some kind of horror, eyes all blinking out. Same opal effect.

The kid keeps _going._

 _“This is what he says all day.  
_ _It’s almost sad, in its own way--  
_ _' **I’M HUNGRY, I’M STARVING,**_ _’  
_ _and people flock_  
to hear what he has to say.”

His hands are shaking; the book depicts a sea of apathetic faces, all grey, and then the great mass of ink and eyes and rhinestone twinkles enveloping _everything,_ swallowing it all in his wake. To his credit, the kid stops reading, thoroughly spooked by now, but he keeps thumbing through the pages as though he can’t help himself. Taako nearly wrenches it from him, but not quick enough. He catches the last of it.

 _“And lest you think you’ll sleep at night,  
_ _just remember he’s nothing but plain.  
_ **_Nothing_ ** _can sate John’s appetite  
_ _except for_ **_YOUR_ **  


**_ENTIRE_ **

**_HOME_ **

**_PLANE._ ** _”_

With that, Taako _slams_ the book shut.

He puts it so high up on a dresser that the kid can’t reach it and he has to get a barstool just to come even close, then doesn’t even have to urge Angus to try to retreat to his bedroom. He tries to soothe Angus with the typical Caleb Cleveland nonsense, but he’s not even paying _attention_ anymore, too distressed by this damn book to do anything.

One thing’s for sure to Taako as he reads: neither of them is going to get any sleep tonight.

“I’ll protect you,” Angus promises, long after he should be asleep.

As Taako lies awake, he can’t help but think it should be the other way around.

**Author's Note:**

> well, i really need to stop making AUs. i know this movie is kind of a meme by now, but like... ...it's always resonated with me and i grieve through elves, so sorry. this is how it is. i love you all, though. <3 thanks for the support always.


End file.
